


Shine a Light

by siseon



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M, MAMA!AU, Superpowers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-14
Updated: 2016-07-14
Packaged: 2018-07-24 00:37:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7486413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/siseon/pseuds/siseon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Baekhyun is hopelessly in love with Minseok.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shine a Light

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Nacs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nacs/gifts).



Baekhyun always liked light.

It was beautiful, a safe place that would give him hope and warmth. He always seeked for it, just like everybody did. He was in need and in search of it. To see everything, everyone.

Then he became the light. Before he knew, people stick to him, to get some of his brightness.

Baekhyun never complained. Why would he? The light gave him friends; the ones that accepted him, the ones that cared for him, the ones that liked him and the ones that he loved but never even knew.

Baekhyun was the light.

He liked seeing things shine. He liked them blink at him with a spark. He liked his power to make everything look beautiful; because light was beautiful. When darkness was gone, everything could be beautiful.

There had been a time when he thought everything around him was only attractive because of his own presence. He wondered, if the things he fell for were actually an illusion of his own imagination. He wondered if he made them. And everything felt like a lie.

That was when he lost the control over it. And that was when he stopped giving out brightness generously.

But that didn't last long. Out of the blue, a quiet knock on the door and the gentle steps after it, took these thoughts away.

Yes, he met someone one day.

Someone with dark brown, carefully designed slightly wavy hair, small yet built body and almond eyes which were created by the God with his own hands carefully, slowly, eagerly.

Baekhyun only watched from afar while the others greeted him the first day they met, and surprised his friends with his attitude. He wanted to see it first, how would this person look without his light given? He struggled not to give those perfect eyes sparks, and make them even more beautiful —if that was even possible—. But he had to wait.

Then one day he smiled.

Baekhyun caught him smiling.

Lips curving upwards at a joke a younger trainee made, slowly revealing his teeth and gums. His hand covered it after few seconds when he couldn't stop himself as his skin reddened.

Baekhyun saw them.

He saw that dark orbs white, not brown. White meant joy, white meant sparkles, white meant pure.

White meant beautiful.

Baekhyun saw something perfect that doesn't carry the touch of his light on them.

And it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

 

“Hyung,” Sehun called out, pushing the door open with a wind that was far too strong to be only created by the door’s powerful move. He walked inside eyeing the faces that were looking at him now, and stopped at one when he was finished flashing glances. “Where’s Jongin?”

Baekhyun pursed his lips as he looked away, at the ceiling, considering if he knew the answer of the question. He, then, looked back at the taller and shrugged.

Sehun frowned, but lifted his head up sharply with knitted eyebrows when someone answered the question instead. “He’s out with Taemin,” Junmyeon said, without looking away from the TV.

Sehun made a sound again, but this time, it was a bit disappointed or tired. At least, to Baekhyun.

It took only two steps and he was standing near the couch in the small room, then he literally threw himself between Junmyeon and Baekhyun.

“Yah!” Baekhyun shouted when his hardly-found comfortable position was ruined because of the new weight on the couch. Sehun didn’t pay attention to him.

There was this show on where a boy with an illness called cutaneous porphyria was jailed in a small house and his bumpy relationship with some strange drug addict dude was being played. And Baekhyun seemed to like it a lot, because whenever Sehun saw Baekhyun in this room, he was sitting on the left side of the couch, and looking at the TV without blinking. Even though he wasn’t the type to get mad easily, he would, if someone distracted him or annoyed him, which Sehun often did.

Sehun tasted revenge on this act, because it was often Baekhyun, Chanyeol or Jongdae who did the ‘irritating thing’.

He could see Baekhyun getting emotional over the show when he looked at him and wondered for the first time, what was actually happening in the show.

That seemed like a classical mistake done by the younger generation; taking a look at the dramas the older were watching.

Sehun wasn’t someone who liked to point that he was the youngest frequently, because in reality he didn’t like the fact. But it was his duty of course, to call the others ‘moody old ladies’ when they were watching the stupid thing with this much attention.

The guys were fighting over something on the screen, and the shorter’s eyes were filled with tears. All Sehun could think of was how good of an actor he was, but Baekhyun and Junmyeon were at the edge of crying which Sehun couldn’t understand.

Baekhyun looked really sad over it, and Sehun just wanted to laugh out loud, but he knew he would get beaten from both sides if he did.

After minutes of enduring, Sehun couldn’t stop himself from sighing and voiced his thoughts out; “I’m bored.”

Baekhyun didn’t pay attention to him this time, he was trying to catch the last words of the episode silently. Junmyeon, however, took a glance at his way real quick, just to see if he was planning to ruin their ceremony.

The show was over by the time the slight wind changed it’s way, and now it was blowing strongly from the TV’s way.

Baekhyun was yawning and stretching his body to get rid of the emotional disturbance he just had, and Junmyeon was looking at Sehun, but alerted this time.

“Sehun! Stop it!” Someone shouted from behind the couch. “You’re ruining my hair,” Yifan complained as he changed his position on the chair to get a look at his reflection on the window.

“Ugh,” Sehun threw his head backwards and made more noises like he was struggling with life in the hardest way.

Baekhyun hit his stomach with the back of his hand to shut him up, and he was fully out of his drama crisis when Sehun fighted back, inviting the older into wrestling.

“You’ve been very naughty ever since you got that Aang thing,” Baekhyun said playfully as he tried to push Sehun away while hitting his butt at the same time.

“Oh, you’re just jealous,” Sehun sang, and held the smaller’s wrists.

Baekhyun could comment on it.

But he didn’t.

Later that day, when Baekhyun was off to the dance studio, Jongin was back, playing a video game with Sehun. Kyungsoo and Jongdae were working on a song at the other end of the corridor, Junmyeon, Yifan and Tao were out shopping.

The long halls were as lifeless as ever even though there were a lot of people inside the building. Baekhyun’s shoes didn’t make any sound on the black carpet covering the ground as he stepped further to the studio.

“Hey, Baekhyun-ah!”

Baekhyun turned his head backwards and saw Yixing running towards him. Baekhyun greeted him with a smile.

“Are you going to meet Laoshi?” Yixing asked as he stood beside Baekhyun, looking as innocent as ever.

“No,” Baekhyun said. “Is he in there?” He pointed to the door’s way.

“He is.” He suddenly smiled widely as if he remembered something. “Lu-ge told me on the phone that Chanyeol’s powers have appeared.”

It took a while for the information to sink into Baekhyun’s brain. After looking at Yixing’s overly happy expression for almost ten seconds, Baekhyun managed to close his parted lips and threw his eyebrows up in surprise.

“Really?” He blinked.

Yixing nodded repeatedly and placed a hand on Baekhyun’s back, pushing him slightly to make him continue walking.

“What does he do?” Baekhyun’s question was ignored. Baekhyun suspected Yixing didn’t know the answer or he wanted him to see it with his eyes himself.

There was a funny smell when they reached the door. Baekhyun’s vision was covered with smoke when he pushed it open.

“What the-”

Yixing coughed behind Baekhyun.

Four pair of eyes turned to them. Baekhyun tried to blow the fog away waving his hand in front of his face. He wrinkled his face at the terrible smell which gave him no room to breathe. It was like something had burnt.

He heard a giggle inside the smoke, and a moment later, the windows on the corner of the room hit the walls, opening roughly. The fog flew away faster than it normally would, and Baekhyun now could see the figures inside the room clearly.

On the other side of the room, Minseok was sitting on the couch with Luhan on the armrest. They both were laughing.

On the center, there stood Chanyeol, in tears from laughing hard. There were black stains all over the hardwood floor and the mirrors which covered the two of the walls in the room.

“What happened?” Yixing asked when he stepped inside, following Baekhyun. He couldn’t hide the amusement in his voice and it made Luhan and Chanyeol laugh even more.

Baekhyun walked further inside carefully, and he realized the big leather couch pressed on the other wall were covered in black too. And it was the source of the terrible smell.

Baekhyun’s expression changed to terrified.

He used to like that couch.

“It’s flame... right?” he voiced out without knowing, and gained looks telling him ‘thanks for pointing the obvious.’

“It would’ve been better if you did not burn the whole couch, Chanyeol,” said a crystalline, harmonic voice.

Baekhyun managed to look away from the couch finally, and turned his head to face the man eyeing Chanyeol without any sympathy, scolding or anything. He was just eyeing, almost curiously. Maybe patiently.

“I think it’s enough that he hadn’t burnt the couch we’re sitting on, Laoshi,” Minseok said between giggles.

Luhan bent down to push him playfully on the arm as he laughed like a high school girl.

Baekhyun had to look away.

What a disturbing scene was that.

Minseok was, again, so bright, but Baekhyun knew that telekinesis couldn’t make things shine.

Then how did he do it? Baekhyun was sure he wasn’t using his power. He knew for so long how to control his own power after months of works with their teacher, Vai Lee.

“It doesn’t matter, Lay hyung can heal you guys if something happens,” Chanyeol said with a grin as he swept the tears away from his eyes. He was finally calming down slowly. 

“That’s not how it works,” Yixing shook his head at Chanyeol as he leaned his back on the mirror. The clean side, of course.

“He cannot heal the damage created by the other blessings the Goddess has given,” Vai Lee said, crushing through Chanyeol’s eyes with his deep black orbs covered with overmuch eyeliner. He bent down slightly to wipe a stain off his pants. He did the move so smoothly, so gently, just like his every move. “You may not let it get out of your perfectly healthy mind ever again. Looks like you’re quite effortless about my words, Chanyeol-ssi.”

As Vai Lee watched Chanyeol for a while with his chin lifted upwards with nobility, almost superiority, everyone held their breaths. He slowly eyed the others with warning written all over his expression.

“I will take my leave now,” He busied himself fixing his already perfect tie on the mirror for a minute. “You’ll get informed about the training hours about your powers. Your usual schedule with other things will not get affected.” He bent his head down a little as a goodbye when he turned back at them. “Gentlemen,” he said before walking off, buttoning up the single black circle on his jacket.

They waited for the older to get disappear completely to inhale properly, and Baekhyun broke the silence as he burst out laughing, hitting Chanyeol’s arm playfully at the same time.

Vai Lee wasn’t a scary person.

For the most of the time, to be exact.

There were some things that he couldn’t stand, and only when one of them was being done, he would became a royal who only has one purpose; make them obey you.

No one wanted to see that side of him. They acted careful enough not to bring out the man’s secondary personality, however Chanyeol proved that he was really successful on doing the opposite.

Well, at least he was successful at something.

“Looks like you’re quiet effortless about–” Chanyeol’s exaggerated imitation of their trainer were cut off with a thud. Chanyeol shouted a pained noise, but that didn’t make Minseok regret hitting him.

 

“Become the pure snow, oh, my feeling

Let the drops that washes away pain fall down,”

Baekhyun knew from the start what was happening to him. It didn’t appear out of nowhere, just like how it was on the movies. No. It happened slowly.

First, he felt absolutely nothing, and didn’t show any interest. He was just a normal person like the others, someone who was going to befriend with him, and band member, maybe.

Second step, he started to wonder. Wonder about his personality, wonder about his habits, his interests, his type of music, how well he sang, how well he danced, how he liked his coffee.

Third step was watching. Baekhyun started watching him without realizing; his eyes searched for him while walking down the halls. He would peek into the every open door he’d passed, to see if he was in there.

Fourth was the one, which made him understand. He got anxious when he saw someone other than Baekhyun cuddled him, looked closer to him, and sometimes just because they talked to him.

It was jealousy.

It hit Baekhyun like a spasm on the back of his eyes. He knew.

It wasn’t something silly, innocent and sudden like in the movies; it was sardonic, frightening and so, so slow.

That was why he never believed in the love at the first sight crap.

It wasn’t the knowledge of his one sided love that gave him headaches. It was the judging eyes he figured people would give him if they knew about this.

He didn’t want to admit, he had learnt how to hide his sexuality from his family and friends, and he thought he could live like that. No one would take it easy after hearing what Baekhyun was.

He imagined his best friends looking at him with disgust, but saying that it was okay just to get away from him as soon as possible, and ignoring him for the rest of their life, only shooting him looks from afar and whispering to each other’s ears while pointing at him.

He was scared.

It scared him so much that he wanted to go crawl under his bed every time the imaginary scene passed by his head.

“Become the pure snow, oh, my prayer 

Become it so much that you wash my sorrow away,”

So he decided to keep it to himself. He wouldn’t gain anything from it. He would just lose.

But he didn’t know it would be this hard.

Hiding under his cheerful and lively side became a pain sometimes.

If they’d never met, this wouldn’t have happened. Baekhyun wouldn’t have to go through this. He wished so many times for his feelings to disappear. When that didn’t work, he prayed that the source of his feelings to disappear, but that sounded so cruel. How could anyone wish something like that for the person they liked, they loved, anyways? So he changed the prayer to vanish himself.

“Become a single crystal, then become the blizzard

That forces open the door to brightness”

Baekhyun put away the paper sheets as he got out of the song’s emotion. He looked up when someone started clapping beside him.

“Your singing has gotten even better, Baekhyun-ah!” Minseok said with a grin.

Baekhyun eye smiled him and forgot to thank when he met Minseok’s eyes. He found himself staring. Again.

“Did Chanyeol wrote this?” He leaned to grab the papers Baekhyun left on the table in front of them. He examined the lyrics with such a deep interest.

“No,” Baekhyun said immediately, this time shooting the older a wide smile. “I did.”

“Really?” He gave Baekhyun a look from the corner of his eyes. “It’s so good.”

“I wrote it thinking about you, hyung.” Words just spilled out. With a smile. That didn’t matter though, everyone thought he was joking even when he really wasn’t.

Minseok hit him on the arm. It was meant to be a light, playful one, but it hurt. Baekhyun didn’t know how it hurt.

Where it hurt.

Baekhyun felt a vibration on his thigh, and leaned back on the chair, raising his butt up with his right leg to reach the phone on his pocket. He glanced at Minseok who was still studying the papers.

“It’s Laoshi,” he informed, even though he was sure that the other didn’t care.

He tapped the password and got face to face with the trainer’s simple message: “I will see you at the gym on the first floor in 20 minutes.”

“He wants to meet me?” Baekhyun asked out loud to himself. There was one more question on his head; why the gym?

“I thought you were done training your powers,” Minseok said, blinking at him with those hamster eyes.

“Uh, yes,” Baekhyun answered, but it sounded so unsure. “I think I’ll go eat before that.” He got up.

“Is he here yet?”

“He says he’ll meet me in 20 minutes,” Baekhyun glanced at his phone while answering as if he was checking if the information was correct, but it was just an automatic move because the message was already closed and screen was dark.

“Okay, I’ll be there too after cleaning my room.”

There was a silence. “Why?”

Minseok smiled almost proudly. “Because I don’t have to drink that poison every morning anymore,” he cheered and posed cutely.

There was a silence again as Baekhyun continued to look at the older with a confused expression.

“What?” That wasn’t a question. A wide grin appeared on Baekhyun’s face and Minseok’s widened.

“Yeah, I may take over your class today,” he bent his head to the side playfully.

“I would be very pleased by that action,” Baekhyun imitated Vai Lee’s tone. They both laughed and when Minseok tried to kick his shin from where he was sitting, Baekhyun ran to the door.

He was about to wave and get out, but Minseok stopped him with calling his name.

“Don’t you want to see what it is?” Baekhyun was surprised by the look Minseok gave him. It was like he was waiting, hoping for Baekhyun to ask.

“What is it,” Baekhyun asked without any soul, dazed by the disappoint in the pair of eyes before him.

“Should I show you?” He slided the chair’s wheels backwards and faced Baekhyun. He was smiling sheepishly again.

“Is- Isn’t it something dangerous?” Baekhyun stuttered, shifting his legs.

“No,” Minseok shook his head. “No, it isn’t.”

He got up slowly, looking really amused by the expression Baekhyun was giving him. The younger looked almost scared. But Minseok didn’t want to break his mysterious atmosphere, so he stopped himself from giggling.

He stood a few steps away from the younger, and took a deep breath, closing his eyes.

Baekhyun watched Minseok's beautiful figure with his never ending liking. All the feelings he was long tired of to describe grew more visible, breaking the mask he was trying to create.

He was ready to held his neck, bring him closer and push their lips together when something invaded his field of view.

A white dot.

Baekhyun creased his brows as he watched the dot fall, and melt on the ground. When he looked up, there were more of them, falling to his head and around him. Beautiful, little white dots.

Snow.

Baekhyun held his breath. Was that even possible?

Become the pure snow.

What kind of fate was that? Did God liked to break him down? Was he just hapless? Playing games on him must’ve amused the heavens so much.

And Minseok too.

His eyes were open now and he was smiling like a mad man, so cheerful to see Baekhyun losing it.

“It’s beautiful, right?”

You’re beautiful.

Baekhyun only could nod, not voicing out the thought.

The snowflakes kept falling down on him gently.

Minseok kept laughing shamelessly.

And Baekhyun felt something raise on his chest. His throat felt full, his head started to spin. His hands trembled uncomfortably as he tried to massage his forehead. He was sweating, but it felt cold.

So familiar.

“Baekkie?” Minseok called out as realized something was wrong. “What’s wrong?” He sounded so worried, so ready to panic that it made Baekhyun’s stomach sick.

“I’m okay,” he whispered quickly, holding out a hand to stop Minseok from coming closer. “It’s okay,” he said loudly this time and inhaled deeply, throwing his bangs back with a hand.

Minseok didn’t seem very convinced but Baekhyun couldn’t care.

He just had to get out, that was the only thing he knew.

Because he felt himself getting brighter.

He knew he was going to shine even more.

Minseok was now looking at him amazed more than concerned, like he saw something really surprising and beautiful. Baekhyun didn’t like it. That wasn’t right. He wanted Minseok to like him, not the light.

“I– I should go,” Baekhyun said hurriedly and covered his face with a hand as if that would help anything. He turned back and dashed out, without looking back.

The last thing he saw was Minseok’s half step towards him with his lips parted and a hand reaching to grab him. But Baekhyun was sure Minseok had nothing to say. He would just stare at him blankly, hypnotised if Baekhyun stopped.

That was why he didn’t.

 

He didn’t even know they had a gymnasium. He realized he had never paid enough attention to the signboards on the halls. Who did, anyways?

It turned out that the room wasn’t in use, and had nothing in it except the navy blue berber carpet which covered the whole floor.

His breathing was stable and he wasn’t sweating anymore. But the feeling on his chest was still there. He wondered if something really got stuck there.

It didn’t take long for Vai Lee to show himself up, and he was actually surprised to see Baekhyun there before himself.

He was wearing a dark blue suit, a bit shiny, more allowable to the stage than the daily wearing. But he didn’t judge the man’s fashion sense, because he looked good in anything. The jacket’s blue and the jet black shirt under it were one of the best outfits he had ever worn, Baekhyun would say. Plain, yet so classy. Probably that Salvatore Ferragamo shoes cost more than Baekhyun would’ve consider.

“It’s such a surprise,” he said, raising one brow up that caused nearly invisible wrinkles on his forehead. Although Baekhyun didn’t know his age, most of the people on the company spoke to him with manners, so it was obvious that he was at least fifteen years older. But you could never tell from his looks though, he looked much younger.

Baekhyun didn’t say anything, or didn’t even bother to put on a cover on his distressed expression. He never put on covers in front of Vai Lee.

Vai Lee pulled out a chair behind a column Baekhyun haven’t seen before. He sat on it after pulling his pants up just a bit from the knees carefully. He exhaled tiredly.

“I bet you’re wondering why I suddenly called you here after such a long time.”

“I do,” Baekhyun answered indifferently.

“I see you in a bad state,” he said mildly. “I thought you might need help.”

“Uhm, thanks.”

“You were doing fine before, but you’re the type to lose the control over your power easily as I figured out the first time we met.” His voice was like a lullaby, and his eyes so soft yet without any pity or sympathy. And the thing he did with his brows, raising them up slightly at the striking part of the sentence gave everything to make people trust him. Feel close to him. “You’ve been fluttering all over inside your emotions, just like a teenage girl on her period.”

Baekhyun snorted a laugh which turned into sarcastic giggles.

“You know it’s true, okay?” he said, and Baekhyun could swear that he saw a ghost of a smirk on his lips.

“Okay,” Baekhyun sang, rolling his eyes.

“Since you don’t know how to cope with them, all of the surpluses go directly to feed your powers.” A strand fell on his forehead from his sprayed wavy hair. “We have to go through our exercises again, just to keep you safe.”

“I can’t say this makes me happy, but I know I need to.”

“And I guess my timing was perfect.”

Of course he noticed Baekhyun almost had an attack minutes ago. He confirmed his trainer nodding his head.

They stared at each other for a while before Vai Lee sighed again.

“You never ask things, Baekhyun,” he sounded upset.

“And you’re much more enthusiastic than you look. What do you want me to ask?” Baekhyun didn’t bother to hide his laugh.

“Not this, certainly.” He gazed around the room. “Do you know why are we here?”

“Uh, is it because Chanyeol ruined the dance studio?”

“No.” He looked back at Baekhyun, waved a hand towards him. “No, they’ve already cleaned it.” There was a pause. “We’re here because there are no mirrors in here.”

Baekhyun looked around like he didn’t know that. “I don’t understand why you’re excited about this.”

“It will be safer.”

“Oh,” Baekhyun murmured, although he didn’t get the point. He didn’t care about the subject much.

When the older was about to continue, they heard the door crack open.

“Laoshi,” Minseok greeted formally.

“Xiumin,” Vai Lee nodded his head at him, inviting him inside. “What’s it?”

Minseok glanced at Baekhyun with a knowing smile who looked troubled.

“Looks like you gave me frost in that bottles,” he said, shaking his head like he was disapproving, though he was smiling happily.

Vai Lee got up immediately. “Oh my,” he whispered, looking at Minseok like he was an angel that he created. Baekhyun would agree with the angel part.

“Should I just leave or,” Baekhyun interjected.

Heads turned to him and Vai Lee nodded.

“Yes, I’ll inform you later,” he said.

Minseok waved at him as Baekhyun walked past them, smiling in response.

“Oh, Baekhyun,” Vai Lee said, stopping Baekhyun. “Kris, Suho and Tao should take the new potion package. I left them on the lab.”

“Okay, I’ll tell them,” Baekhyun said, and walked off without waiting for an answer.

 

“Kai, Kai, wait a minute,” Baekhyun said as he approached to the other who stopped dancing with the call. “Do that again.”

Jongin sighed as he repeated the move, slowly this time. Baekhyun mimicked him, but wasn’t pleased.

“Again,” he said.

“Hyung,” Jongin whined, pulling his hoodie’s zipper down furiously.

“Shut up,” Baekhyun widened his eyes, hands on his belly. “Who told you to be a dance god? You have to help your olders! Didn’t they teach you that at school?”

Jongin let out some bored sounds, almost suitable to be called hysterical chuckles with a pained expression. “Okay,” he said, getting a hold of himself as much as he could. “Watch carefully this time.” He positioned himself in front of the mirror, looking straightly at his reflection with a serious expression. “And repeat,” he said harshly, as he raised his eyebrows at Baekhyun.

Surprisingly, Baekhyun was able to do the move without any flaws this time, and Jongin was nearly in tears because he wasn’t sure if he could stay in his right mind if his hyung asked him to do it one more time.

“Yehehey!” Baekhyun cheered, jumping around and swaying his arms around like a crazy person.

“Thank God,” Jongin threw himself on the new couch which was replaced by the poor burnt one.

“What did you say?” Baekhyun ran towards him, and kicked the younger’s thighs with his knee. “Huh?”

Jongin whined again, unpleased, then he scared Baekhyun off by suddenly attacking back at him.

“Oh, they’re at it again,” Yifan said as he stepped in and Luhan's giggle was heard.

Baekhyun let himself down on Jongin’s side on the couch when Jongin stopped fighting. He tried to put his head on Jongin’s shoulder but he got pushed off.

“Hyung,” Baekhyun murmured and held his hand out to Yifan, looking at the water bottle in his hand. Yifan wordlessly threw it to him and Baekhyun barely caught it.

"I want some too," Minseok said, walking behind Yifan.

Baekhyun stopped drinking and held the water out to Minseok. "Here," he said.

Minseok blinked at the bottle and then back at Baekhyun. "No, no, you drink it." He shook his hand.

"Wait," Baekhyun crooned, smacking his mouth loudly, voice directed to Yifan. "Did it have something weird in it? It tastes funny."

“Huh?” Yifan knitted his eyebrows in confusion. “Oh,” he said afterwards. “It had some potion.” He continued before Baekhyun could interfere. “Laoshi told us we should add some in everything we drink. To have our powers as soon as possible.”

Baekhyun only mumbled something meaningless in response, but then he asked with a rush of panic. “Anything bad won’t happen to me, right?”

“I don’t think so,” Yifan said, but he didn’t sound much confident. “You used to drink it back then too, anyways.”

“Right,” Baekhyun whispered, but put the bottle on the ground and pushed it as far as he could while still sitting on the couch, like it was some kind of poison.

Jongin stood up and turned music back on after he nodded to something Yifan said, and they both started to practice. Baekhyun decided to give up for today and threw his upper body on the couch, feeling exhausted suddenly.

He saw Minseok and Luhan sitting on the ground not so far from him, and he kept looking despite it hurt to twist his neck to get a view and he felt his eyes almost pop out. They had this thing between each other which was called best friendship, but Baekhyun would just laugh audibly every time they mentioned it. Luhan was drinking his own bottle of water while Minseok watched him with eyes sparkling.

"What?" Luhan whined, smiling. No, he flirted.

Minseok laughed just the same way. He stared a while after talking. “Give me that.” And a second later Minseok was drinking Luhan’s water. From the bottle Luhan just drank. After rejecting the one Baekhyun’s lips touched.

Baekhyun’s next gulp end up painfully. The thickness was nothing like he had read on books before. It hurt. He knew it shouldn’t, but the knowledge wasn’t helping with the heaviness raising up on his chest. It started to get stronger as Minseok touched Luhan’s knee slightly, and now he was sure someone invisible was stepping on his chest. Luhan put his head on Minseok’s shoulder. Okay, this invisible man was totally fat. Minseok ruffled Luhan’s hair. Very, very fat.

The pain came to a degree that he couldn’t even keep his eyes open, and he was actually happy not being able to see the love birds. When he reached his forehead to push his hair away, it felt all wet with sweat. His hands started to shake as he held onto his hair as hard as he could, and he felt cold. Really cold. Not like when your coat isn’t thick enough and you’re outside when it’s snowing; It was like you’re playing snowball fight while you’re completely naked.

He didn’t realise he let out a small moan, and Minseok was looking right at him with a frozen smile on his face which slowly disappeared. Luhan followed Minseok’s gaze not long after, and he was the first one to get up and rush over him.

He screamed something like, “Guys!” to Jongin and Yifan, and the music was turned off after a few seconds.

Baekhyun felt a hand hold his wrists and pull his hand off of his forehead and eyes. He resisted for a moment but he felt too weak to fight back.

“Oh my God, he’s sweating so much,” he barely heard Luhan say.

“What’s wrong with him?” It was Minseok’s worried voice.

“Go get Laoshi,” Yifan said to the side, then he heard footsteps. “Hurry!”

Someone fixed his position on the couch, dragging his upper body forward, and keeping his feet up with two bags under them. They wiped his sweat with a t-shirt, and took his jacket off a bit harshly since Baekhyun had no intention on helping his friends out. He just wanted to lay down and accept all kind of outcomes.

The door opened with a wind, a real one this time, and two people ran towards them. Luhan, Minseok and Yifan immediately backed off.

“Hey,” a clear voice spoke. “Baekhyun. Open your eyes, look at me.”

Baekhyun turned his head to the other way, only wanting everyone to shut up.

Hands held him by the shoulders this time, and they made him sit up with force. “You’re going to open your eyes now.” Baekhyun cried in pain as the hands shook his body. “Come on.” His voice was gentle, so gentle, Baekhyun suspected it was real.

“Good,” Vai Lee whispered calmly. “Now you just breathe,” he said. But instead of doing it, Baekhyun threw his head down, because now, he was sure he wasn’t even going to succeed in breathing. “Baekhyun,” Vai Lee called out again.

When his already hurting eyes started to ache more even when they were closed, he slowly opened them again and saw bright white light leaking from everywhere of his body. He groaned at the sight, and he was sure he heard surprised gasps a few steps away.

“Baekhyun, lift your head, it’s okay,” Vai Lee tried to calm him down. Baekhyun actually lifted his head this time, but kept shaking his head non-stop, with tears pooling his eyes. “It’s—"

Vai Lee got cut off suddenly, when Baekhyun bent down again, a hand covering his mouth. “No,” Vai Lee said sternly, lifting him up again by his elbows. “No, you’re not going to throw up. Do you understand? You will not.”

Baekhyun looked at him with almost pleading eyes as Vai Lee placed a hand on his forehead. His vision got blurry when his stomach tightened again and he had no choice but to lean to the side and pull his hand out of the way, but this time Vai Lee placed two fingers to his mouth, forcing him back on the couch.

“Shh,” he said. “Look at here.” He gestured at his eyes, lifting his eyebrows up. He wiped the one tear that escaped from Baekhyun’s right eye. “Breathe,” he ordered, and Baekhyun was able to do it while looking directly at his trainer’s eyes in a very short distance. “You’re better now, right?” Baekhyun nodded.

He took three more breaths after his body got limp on Vai Lee’s arms and his vision darkened.


End file.
